UT Dallas Appoints Dr. James B. Gary, Vice President, Chief Information Officer

The University of Texas at Dallas today announced the appointment of Dr. James B. Gary as vice president and chief information officer, a new position responsible for operating, upgrading and securing the university’s entire information technology infrastructure. The appointment is effective Feb. 1.

An alumnus of UT Dallas, Gary has been an employee of the university for nearly a decade, most recently as assistant vice president for information resources. Gary’s appointment followed the completion of an extensive search for candidates for the cabinet-level position. The new position replaces that of executive director for information resources.

“We’re very pleased to move Dr. Gary into this role,” said President David E. Daniel. “The position was elevated to vice president and chief information officer in an acknowledgement of the importance of information technology to this campus and with all due regard for the heightened concern over information technology issues recently on campus.  We view this appointment and the organizational changes that will accompany it as a fundamental opportunity to change the way we use IT to teach and to do business.”

“I am honored to be given the chance to lead this next phase in the evolution of information technologies at UT Dallas,” Gary said.  “The university has substantial strength within the IT staff and we look forward to engaging the new and ongoing opportunities for excellence.”

Gary will lead a staff of more than 100 in six units that support the university’s computing and telecommunications activities for its students, faculty and staff.

Gary joined UT Dallas’ IT organization in 1998 as a UNIX systems administrator.  After that, he held a series of increasingly responsible positions at the university, including network administrator, director of communications and technical services and assistant vice president for information resources.

Gary’s higher education training and experience is in physics.  He earned a Ph.D. degree and an M.S. degree, both in physics, from UT Dallas and a B.S. degree in the same discipline from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. 

Before coming to work for UT Dallas, Gary was a physicist at the Applied Physics Laboratory at The Johns Hopkins University, where he conducted space science research.  He also served as an astronomy instructor at Richland Community College in Richardson, Texas, a chemist at Scientech Incorporated in Carrollton, Texas, and, while a Peace Corps volunteer, was a science coordinator at Vaipouli College in Western Samoa.  He also served as a graduate research assistant while pursuing his graduate education at UT Dallas.

About UT Dallas

The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 14,500 students.  The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores.  The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs.  For additional information about UT Dallas, please visit the university’s website at www.utdallas.edu.

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